U.S. Corn Farmers Hear a Call for EthanolU.S. farmers will plant more acres of corn this year than at any time since 1944, according to new data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The trend is tied to the boom in demand for ethanol, which has pushed up the price of corn.

U.S. farmers will plant more acres of corn this year than at any time since 1944, according to new data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

While plantings of soybeans, cotton, and rice are all down, the Agriculture Department projects that 90.5 million acres of corn will be planted this year — 15 percent more than in 2006.

The trend is tied to the boom in demand for ethanol, which has pushed up the price of corn.

Ken McCauley, a corn farmer from White Cloud, Kan., says he's planting 1,000 more acres of corn this year than he did last year. Melissa Block talks with McCauley, who is the president of the National Corn Growers Association.